Expansible index cards



May 29, 1962 F. WASSELL EXPANSIBLE INDEX CARDS 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 19, 1955 INVENTO FRANK LLOYD WASS iwgm ATTORNEYS.

May 29, 1962 F. 1.. WASSELL EXPANSIBLE INDEX CARDS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 19, 1955 FIG. 9.

INVENTOR. FRANK LLOYD WASSELL May 29, 1962 3,036,576

F. L. wAssELL EXPANSIBLE INDEX CARDS Filed May 19, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 r 1 l I I I I l II FIG. /7.

INVENTOR. FRANK LLOYD WASSELL 3,%fi,57b Patented May 29, 1962 ice 3,036,576 EXPANSTBLE INDEX CARDS Frank Lloyd Wassell, Westport, Conn, assignor, by mesne assignments, to Wassell Urganization, Inc, Westport, onn., a corporation of Delaware Filed May 19, 1955, Ser. No. 599,510 4 Claims. (Cl. 12Q16.7)

The present invention relates to expansible index cards and ledger records, and, more particularly, to novel and improved means adapted to be attached to either single or folded index cards for causing the cards to be expanded when they are withdrawn from a card file or drawer.

Much of the present wear on vertical card .and ledger records is due to the thumbing of the corners and top edges of these cards or records in order to see the pertinent filing information or indicia on the cards. It will be evident that this wear and tear on the cards is of considerable importance in a modern business ofiice where hundreds and even thousands of cards may be searched in an active file in one day.

To reduce this wear on the index cards or ledger records, single bowed springs are currently used with folded cards to render the cards expansible. The springs usually have a tab at one end which is adapted to fit through slots formed in the folded edge of the cards. Expansible cards using a spring of this type must be made from a very high grade of paper having a certain minimum thickness, so that the card will properly respond to the expansion action of the spring. Since filing space in modern business ofiices is at a premium, it is desirable to use both the thinnest paper stock possible, so as to take up a minimum of space in filing, and the lowest grade of paper possible, so as to reduce the original cost of the paper. Further, it is desirable to not only have an expansible feature for folded cards but also to have single cards which are expansible when removed from a file and held in a group.

A still further disadvantage of the single bowed spring expanders currently in use for expanding cards lies in the fact that the expandcrs are of relatively heavy gauge and must be removed from the folded cards before additional information can be typed onto the cards.

It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide novel and improved means for expanding both double and single cards, which is not subject to the above-noted disadvantages.

In accordance with the invention, there is provided a novel and improved double-action expanding spring, which may be made of very light gauge spring steel or other suitable material and which may be attached to both single and folded cards in a variety of diiferent ways, so as to permit the cards tobe compressed in a card file or ledger drawer Within a minimum of space and to be withdrawn from the file or drawer in a group and cxpanded with the pertinent filing information and indicia 7 being rendered readily visible.

When used with and attached at both ends to single cards, the double-action expanding spring in accordance with the invention provides double the spacing between adjacent cards heretofore available. The double-action expanding spring of the invention comprises two end portions and three parallel and separable, longitudinal portions extending therebetween and integral therewith, the inner one of the longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in one direction and the outer ones of the longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in the opposite direction. When both ends are attached to the card and all of the longitudinal portions lie on one side of the card, the longitudinal portion or portions bowed out- Wardly from the card extend double the maximum distance from the card that would be available through the use of a conventional single bowed spring or oppositely bowed spring of similar construction of which the oppositely bowed portions extend from opposite sides of the card.

For more complete understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying figures of the drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary form of double-action spring expander having a tab portion at one end thereof for use with folded cards, in accordance with the invention;

FIGS. 2 and 3 show the double-action spring of FIG. 1 in use with a slotted folded card;

FIG. 4 shows another exemplary form of doubleaction spring expander inserted in slots in a folded card, in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 5 illustrates the type of slots which may be placed in one side of the folded card to receive the double-action spring expander shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 illustrates the manner in which the doubleaction spring expander of FIG. 4 is inserted into the card;

FIG. 7 illustrates the manner in which a plurality of folded cards utilizing the double-action spring expander shown in FIG. 4 may be held when withdrawn from a card file or ledger drawer so as to expand the cards;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are cross-sectional views of the cards in FIG. 7, showing the degree to which they are expanded in FIG. 7 and the degree to which they may be compressed when stored in a card file or ledger drawer.

FIGS. 10 and 11 illustrate the manner in which the double-action spring expander of FIG. 4 may be utilized with a single card;

FIGS. 12, 13 and 14 illustrate the manner in which the spring expander may be inserted into a single card; and

FIGS. l5, l6 and 17 show a further form of exemplary double-action spring expander and the manner in which it may be attached to a single card.

Referring now to FIG. 1, the exemplary form of double-action spring expander 20 shown therein may be composed of a single piece of very thin gauge spring steel or other suitable material. The expander 20 may be stamped out of a sheet of spring steel with its midsection slitted in such .a manner as to form three separable, longitudinal portions 21, 22 and 23. The outer longitudinal portions 21 and 23 are bowed outwardly from the plane of the expander 24 in one direction and the inner longitudinal portion 22 is bowed outwardly from the plane of the expander 20 in the opposite direction.

The bowing of the outer and inner longitudinal portions 21, 22 and 23 must be done in such a manner as to provide a permanent set to these bowed portions. This may be accomplished, for example, by placing the preformed expander 20 in a high pressure crimping machine, wherein the longitudinal portions 21, 22 and 23 are bent away from the plane of the ends 24 and 25 along the junction line between the longitudinal portions and the respective ends.

The end portion 24 is shaped in the form of a tab with a split 26 running longitudinally through the'middle thereof so as to permit separable movement of the ends of the tab when being inserted into a slot in a card, such as the slots 28 in the fold line in the folded 'card 29 of FIG. 2.

When the expander 25 has its tab end 24 inserted into a slot 28 in the card 29, the side panels of the folded card 29 are resiliently forced away from each other by spear/re 3 means of the bowed longitudinal portions 21, 22 and 23, as shown in FIG. 3.

Slotted cards of the type shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 are widely used, since marking tabs and other indicia may be removably inserted into slots 28 so as to provide visual information as to the status or subject matter of the card when placed in a file amongst a large number of similar cards. However, this type of card must be specially prepared and must be made from a relatively high grade of paper so as to retain sufiicient strength in the folding edge of the card.

In order to obviate the necessity for specially prepared slotted folded cards, plain cards or ledger forms may be folded and then slotted in the manner shown in FlG. 5 to receive a double-action bowed expander of the type shown in FIGS. 4 and 6. The expander 30 used in FIG. 4 is substantially similar to the expander Zti of FIG. 1, except that the tab end 31 is not split and has a width the same as the main portion of the expander 30.

In FIG. 5, it is seen that a short slit 34 and a long slit 35 are placed adjacent to and perpendicular to the fold line 36 of the folded card or ledger record. In order to insert the expander 30 into a card 32, one ear of the tab 31, as shown in FIG. 6, is inserted into the short slit 34 and the other ear is introduced into the long slit 35. The expander 30 is then rotated into its normal position, with the longitudinal portions of the expander 30 lying perpendicular to the fold line 36.

In FIG. '7, a plurality of folded cards, each including an expander 30, are shown in their expanded condition. In order to clearly observe the filing indicia on the lefthand sides of the individual cards, the group of cards are held with the thumb and forefinger of the right hand engaging the cards on the side of the expanders 3i opposite to the indicia.

While the right sides of the cards are being compressed between the thumb and forefinger, FIG. 8 shows that the expanders 30 have caused the front and back panels of the cards to be widely separated, thereby spreading the cards apart in such a manner as to render the filing indicia clearly visible.

FIG. 9 shows that the individual cards when grouped together may be severely compressed into a card file or ledger folder, without removing the expanders 30. Further, since the folded cards including the expanders 3% may be compressed to the degree shown in FIG. 9, and since the expanders 3t themselves are composed of relatively light gauge spring steel, it will be evident that individual cards may be removed from a card file or ledger folder and run through a typewriter so as to place additional information thereon without removing the expander 30 from the card.

From the showings in FIGS. 3 and 8 of the expanders 20 and 30, respectively, in folded cards, it is evident that there is no need for locking the lower end of the expanders to one or the other panels of the individual card to which the expander is attached, since the expander is substantially enclosed within the space between the front and back panels of the card. However, this is not the case in single cards, wherein the lower ends of the expanders 20 and 30, if left free, would be liable to snag adjacent cards or adjacent expanders. Therefore, in order to obviate this possibility the bottom of the expanders may be secured to the cards by cloth or paper strips adhesively attached to the cards, or the bot-tom of the expander may be inserted into the card, as will be shown below.

In FIGS. 10 and 11, it is seen that the short and the long slits 34 and 35 are stamped or cut into the card near the top edge 39 and may receive an expander, such as the type 30, in the same manner as that shown in FIG. 6. In addition to the slits 34 and 35, a pair of oppositely directed oblique slits 4t and 41 may be stamped or cut into the card directly below the slits 34 and 35, as seen in FIG. 11. The bottom end of the expander 39 4- may then be inserted into the slits 4t and 41, as shown in FIG. 10, after the top portion of the expander has been inserted in the slits 34 and 35.

As shown in FIGS. 12, 13 and 14, this insertion may be accomplished in the following manner. After the top end 31 of the expander 30 has been inserted into the slits 34 and 35 in the manner shown in FIG. 6, a rod 42 is placed under the expander 30, as shown in FIG. 13. The bottom end 43 of the expander 36 is then bent downwardly toward the card and inserted into the oblique slits 4t) and 41, as shown in FIG. 14. The rod 42 is then withdrawn.

An alternate embodiment of the expander which may be used with single or folded cards is shown in 'FIG. 15. This expander 50 has substantially the same form as the expander 30 shown in FIGS. 4-14, except that both of the ends 51 and 52 are similar to the top end 31 of the expander 30. When the expander 50 is used with a single card, as in FIGS. 16 and 17, two equally long parallel slits 55 and 56 may be stamped or cut into the card adjacent to and perpendicular to the top edge 54. The length of the slits 55 and 56 is slightly greater than the longitudinal extent of the expander 59. Adjacent the bottom ends of the slits 55 and 56 and connected therewith are oblique slits 57 and 58, respectively, as shown in FIG. 17.

The top end 51 of the expander 50 may be inserted into the slits 55 and 56 in the same manner as the top end 31 of the expander 30 is inserted into the slits 34 and 35 in FIG. 6. The expander 50 is then pushed upwardly toward the top ends of the slits 55 and 56. The ears of the bottom end 52 of the expander 50 may then be inserted through the slits 57 and 58 in the manner shown in FIG. 14, for example, so as to position the expander 50 in the card in the manner shown in FIG. 16.

Thus there has been provided, in accordance with the invention, novel and improved means for rendering single and folded index cards and ledger records expansible, without using the heavier stock and higher grade paper required by prior expanders.

It will be understood that the above embodiments are meant to be merely exemplary and that they are susceptible of modification and variation within the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, while the various disclosed embodiments of the expander have been specifically shown with either single or folded cards, it will be obvious that the expanders can be used with a great variety of other types of cards or record sheets. Further, it will be obvious that the ends of the expanders may be attached to index cards or ledger records in a variety of different Ways. For example, not only may slits of different design be used, but one or both of the ends may be attached to the cards by paper or cloth strips adhesively attached to the cards. Therefore, the invention is not deemed to be limited in any way except as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The combination of an index card and an expander composed of resilient material attached thereto, said index card having two spaced apart parallel slits therein adjacent to and perpendicular to an edge of the card, and two oppositely directed slits in oblique relation to the edge of the card, said expander having two end portions and three parallel and separable, longitudinal portions extending therebetween and integral therewith, the inner one of said longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in one direction and the outer ones of said longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in the opposite direction, said longitudinal portions being susceptible of compression in a substantially common plane, one of said end portions of said expander having laterally extending ears inserted into said parallel slits, and the other end portion of said expander being inserted into said oblique slits so as to maintain at least one of said longitudinal portions lying in subaoaaeve stantially contiguous relation to said card, all of said longitudinal portions lying on one side of said card.

2. The combination of an index card and an expander composed of resilient material attached thereto, said index card having two spaced apart parallel slits therein adjacent to and perpendicular to an edge of the card, one of said parallel slits being relatively short and the other of said parallel slits being relatively long, and two oppositely directed oblique slits spaced from said two parallel slits, each of said two oblique slits being in line with a respective one of said two parallel slits, said expander having two end portions and three parallel and separable, longitudinal portions extending therebetween and integral therewith, the inner one of said longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in one direction and the outer ones of said longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in the opposite direction, said longitudinal portions being susceptible of compression into a substantially common plane, one of said end portions of said expander having two laterally extending ears inserted into said short and long parallel slits respectively, the other of said end portions being inserted into said oblique slits so as to maintain at least one of said longitudinal portions lying in substantially contiguout relation to said card, all of said longitudinal portions lying on one side of said card.

3. The combination of an index card and an expander composed of resilient material attached thereto, said card having two spaced apart parallel slits adjacent to and perpendicular to an edge of the card, and two slits oppositely directed in oblique relation to an edge of the card, each of said two oblique slits extending into a respective one of said two parallel slits, said expander having two end portions and three parallel and separable, longitudinal portions extending therebetween and integral therewith, the inner one of said longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in one direction and the outer ones of said longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in the opposite direction, said longitudinal portions being susceptible of compression into a substantially common plane, one of said end portions having two laterally extending ears inserted into respective ones of said two parallel slits and the other of said end portions having two laterally extending ears inserted through said two oblique slits, all of said longitudinal portions lying on one side of said card and at least one of said longitudinal portions lying substantially contiguous with said card.

4. The combination of an index card and an expander composed of resilient material attached thereto, said expander having two end portions and three parallel and separable, longitudinal portions extending therebetween and integral therewith, the inner one of said longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in one direction and the outer ones of said longitudinal portions being bowed outwardly in the opposite direction, said longitudinal portions being susceptible of compression into a substantially common plane, and said index card having slits formed therein for receiving said two end portions of said expander so as to maintain at least one of said longitudinal portions lying substantially contiguous with said card, all of said longitudinal portions lying on one side of said card.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,053,009 Carver Feb. 11, 1913 1,694,517 Ross Dec. 11, 1928 2,284,586 McDermott May 26, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS 604,319 Great Britain July 1, 1948 689,698 Great Britain Apr. 1, 1953 288,448 Switzerland May 16, 1953 711,767 Breat Britain July 7, 1954 

